UTSA wins the series but can’t complete a sweep of South Florida

Posted on April 11, 2026 by Jerry Briggs

Conor Myles pitched into the seventh inning, leading the UTSA Roadrunners past the South Florida Bulls for the second time in two days. Later, the Bulls bounced back to win the second game of a doubleheader at Roadrunner Field. In all, nine individuals combined from both teams were ejected during the two games.- Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Kaden Smith pitched into the sixth inning and Ethan Sutton finished off a combined six-hitter Saturday afternoon as the South Florida Bulls downed UTSA 7-1 in an American Conference series finale at Roadrunner Field.

The series opened on Friday afternoon with UTSA downing South Florida, 11-3.

After weather issues forced officials to complete the three-game series on Saturday, the Roadrunners won the first game of the day, 7-3.

In winning two of three from South Florida, they clinched their fourth series victory this season and their 15th straight since 2024. But in the finale, the Bulls averted the sweep.

In the top of the fifth, they scored four two-out runs to take a 6-1 lead en route to their 25th win of the season.

South Florida coach Mitch Hannahs. UTSA beat South Florida 7-3 on Saturday in the first game of an American Conference baseball doubleheader at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

South Florida coach Mitch Hannahs directed his team to its 25th victory over the season with a 7-1 win over UTSA on Saturday afternoon. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Jackson Geiger supplied the big blow with a two-run homer to right off UTSA reliever Cody DeMont.

Smith (4-1) earned the victory after working 5 and 1/3 innings. He allowed one run on six hits and four walks while striking out four.

In relief, Sutton posted his seventh save by pitching 3 and 2/3 hitless and scoreless innings.

UTSA freshman Christopher Gutierrez (1-1) took the loss. He gave up four runs on four hits in 2 and 1/3 innings.

Roadrunners had three individuals ejected during the game.

The three included third baseman Diego Diaz at the end of the second inning, head coach Pat Hallmark in the sixth and pitching coach Zach Butler in the ninth.

Diaz was tossed after making the last out in the second inning.

Trying to score from third base on a pop up to shallow center field, Diaz was tagged out as he collided with South Florida catcher Lance Trippel.

Tempers flared momentarily before others arrived to calm the situation. After a lengthy review of replay video, five South Florida players were also ejected.

In the sixth, Hallmark was tossed after he came onto the field to make a pitching change.

UTSA fans cheered the coach as he walked down the third base line on his way back to the clubhouse.

Butler was ejected in the ninth after South Florida scored its last run of the game on a balk.

With Trippel at third base, he was awarded home when a balk was called on UTSA reliever James Hubbard.

In the wake of South Florida’s victory, the UAB Blazers held the lead in the American with an 8-3 record, followed by the Roadrunners at 8-4.

The Blazers are scheduled to complete their home series with the Wichita State Shockers on Sunday.

The Shockers tied the series at one win apiece after beating the Blazers 5-4 in 10 innings on Saturday.

Records

South Florida 25-10, 6-6
UTSA 25-11, 8-4

Coming up

UTSA at Baylor, Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.

First game

The Roadrunners built an early seven-run lead and held off the Bulls 7-3 to clinch their 15th straight series victory in the American Conference.

UTSA freshman shortstop Aidan Eshelman went two for four at the plate with two RBIs in Saturday’s first game. – Photo by Joe Alexander

The teams were scheduled to play the second game of a doubleheader and the series finale later Saturday afternoon at Roadrunner Field.

Officials elected to schedule the third game Saturday instead of trying to play Sunday because of weather concerns in San Antonio.

Rain pelted the field in the first and the fourth innings and then later in the eighth and ninth.

The weather didn’t slow the Roadrunners, who won their fifth game in a row, including their second in two days against the Bulls, and their 25th overall on the season.

UTSA scored one run in the first inning, two in the second and four in the fourth against South Florida’s Michael Senay, one of the top pitchers in the American.

Senay (6-1) suffered his first loss of the season, giving up seven runs, including six earned, in 3 and 2/3 innings.

UTSA’s Caden Miller delivered the big hit against Senay with a two-run homer in the fourth. Senay entered the game with a 1.34 earned run average.

Conor Myles (5-1) picked up the win for the Roadrunners, as the lefthander from Australia pitched into the seventh without much trouble.

In all, he worked 6 and 2/3, allowing two runs, one of them earned. Miles also yielded only two hits with no walks and one hit batter for his third straight victory.

Sam Simmons relieved Miles in the seventh. He escaped jams in the seventh and eighth and gave up a run in the ninth before escaping further trouble.

UTSA extends streak

UTSA’s string of series victories in the American stretches back to the 2024 season.

Pat Hallmark. UTSA beat South Florida 7-3 on Saturday in the first game of an American Conference baseball doubleheader at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Coach Pat Hallmark’s UTSA Roadrunners extended their streak of series victories in the American Conference to 15 this weekend in taking two of three games from South Florida. – Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA won its last two conference series in 2024, won all nine en route to the league title in 2025 and now has won its first four this season.

The Roadrunners have won two out of three games this season against American foes Florida Atlantic, East Carolina, Rice and South Florida.

The series against FAU and Rice were on the road.

Against both East Carolina and Rice, UTSA lost the opening game and then bounced back to win the next two. Against South Florida, UTSA lost the series finale for the first time this season.

Eshelman’s day

UTSA shortstop Aidan Eshelman had two hits, including a double, with two RBIs in the first game of the day.

On the defensive side, the game was an adventure for the freshman from Houston Episcopal High School.

Eshelman made one spectacular play and helped turn an inning-ending double play in the eighth, but he also committed two errors.

South Florida coach is tossed

South Florida coach Mitch Hannahs was ejected in the seventh inning of the first game, apparently in disagreement with the home plate umpire on what was called as a check-swing strike three.

Bulls pinch hitter Jackson Geiger was at the plate with his team trailing 7-2 and with base runners at second and third. Geiger was called out to end the inning on a breaking pitch.

As Hannahs came out of the dugout and walked toward home plate, he was ejected by home plate ump Blake Felix.

South Florida pitcher Michael Senay. UTSA beat South Florida 7-3 on Saturday in the first game of an American Conference baseball doubleheader at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

South Florida pitcher Michael Senay suffered his first loss of the season in the opener of Saturday’s doubleheader. – Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA wins 11-3 to open the digital scoreboard era at Roadrunner Field

Posted on April 10, 2026 by Jerry Briggs

Caden Miller scores on Drew Detlefsen's three-run double in the bottom of the second inning. UTSA beat South Florida 11-3 in American Conference baseball on Friday, April 10, 2026, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Caden Miller scores on Drew Detlefsen’s three-run double in the bottom of the second inning. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Playing in the shadow of a new scoreboard above the left field wall, the UTSA Roadrunners obliged by lighting it up on its first day in use Friday afternoon in an 11-3 victory over the South Florida Bulls.

UTSA’s Caden Miller comes up smiling after scoring on a head-first slide. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Roommates and team offensive standouts Drew Detlefsen and Andrew Stucky did the honors in leading the charge.

Detlefsen crashed a three-run double to highlight a four-run second inning and Stucky added a monstrous home run — a three-run shot — in the fourth.

When Stucky’s blast cleared the wall just to the left of the batters’ eye in center field, it just kept on going, with the computerized data indicating that it traveled 431 feet.

As it landed, the Roadrunners had secured a 7-2 lead and firm control of the first game in a three-game series with the Bulls.

Stucky acknowledged afterward that UTSA players sensed the fans’ anticipation of the board’s installation.

“I know we definitely saw it on social media,” he said. “Once it was finally up, and we showed up at the field – I think it was Wednesday – we kind of turned into little kids.”

Was there a group selfie?

“I don’t think we did (it) yet,” he said, smiling. “But we probably should. That would be funny.”

Even more fun was the fact that the Roadrunners reached double figures in runs for the 17th time in 34 games this season.

In trying to explain the team’s productivity on offense, Stucky said he thinks it’s because of players’ versatility.

“I think it’s just (because) we can score in different ways,” he said. “Today, early on, we were drawing a lot of walks. Kind of being patient, which turned into runs.

“Some of the innings we had the homers or the doubles, and all that, that’s mainly it. We can score in different ways. Which is helpful.”

With one out in the fourth, South Florida starter Edwin Alicea hit Detlefsen with a pitch. UTSA’s Garrett Gruell followed by drawing a walk.

At that point, South Florida coach Mitch Hannahs visited the mound. Ultimately, Alicea would be replaced with righthander Jonah Sarabia to pitch to the right-side swinging Stucky.

Drew Detlefsen. UTSA beat South Florida 11-3 in American Conference baseball on Friday, April 10, 2026, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Drew Detlefsen lashed a three-run double in the second inning to cap a four-run uprising. – Photo by Joe Alexander

“I didn’t really know much about him,” Stucky said. “So, I was just really trying to get a good pitch to hit. He kind of fell behind in the count (at 2-1). So, at that point, I was just looking for a fastball.

“He gave it to me, and I was making sure I didn’t miss it.”

Records

South Florida 24-9, 5-5
UTSA 24-10, 7-3

Coming up

South Florida at UTSA, Saturday, doubleheader with the first game starting at noon. Two nine-inning games are scheduled separated by a 45-minute break.

Notable

Gunnar Brown started and pitched four innings and Connor Kelley, who got the win, finished by hurling the last five.

Kelley (2-1) looked particularly sharp in shutting out the Bulls on two hits. He struck out two and didn’t walk a batter. Edwin Alicea (5-3) took the loss. Alicea lasted only three and a third innings.

He walked four and hit five batters with pitches. In all, Bulls pitching totaled seven walks, six hit by pitches and one wild pitch.

Drew Detlefsen had one hit, a three-run double, in four at bats. His batting average is .400 after the 34th game of the season. Stucky went one for two, including his 10th homer. Both finished with three RBI.

There it is. The new video board. South Florida vs. UTSA, at Roadrunner Field, 2 p.m. https://t.co/hyCDEtJ4sq pic.twitter.com/jjeotcGZth

— Jerry Briggs (@JerryBriggs) April 10, 2026

New video board expected to debut today as UTSA hosts South Florida

Posted on April 10, 2026 by Jerry Briggs

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

UTSA is expected to play baseball today under a new video board at Roadrunner Field.

First pitch in the opener of a three-game series between the Roadrunners and the South Florida Bulls will be at 2 p.m.

The video board, a 24-by-42-foot display, replaces the old scoreboard and is expected to enhance the fan experience.

Not only will it function as a full digital scoreboard, it also will have capability to show live video, sponsor recognition and fan engagement.

Meanwhile, the Roadrunners and the Bulls will provide the on-field entertainment in a matchup of programs sitting in the upper tier of the American Conference standings.

Records

South Florida 24-8, 5-4
UTSA 23-10, 6-3

Coming up

South Florida at UTSA, today, 2 p.m.
South Florida at UTSA, Saturday, 2 p.m.
South Florida at UTSA, 1 p.m.

Notable

The UAB Blazers lead the American with a record of 22-11 and 7-2. As for the Roadrunners, they’re tied with East Carolina, a game behind in the standings at 6-3.

UTSA has played good defense recently, playing error-free baseball for five straight games, including two wins to close out a road series at Rice last weekend and a 6-2 victory Tuesday at Tarleton State.

“I think defense is really the key,” UTSA pitcher Conor Myles said. “We’re always going to hit. We’re always going to put up good at bats.

“But when our defense is good and when our pitchers are throwing pitches over the plate, we’re a pretty tough team to beat.”

Pitching rotations

Righthander Gunnar Brown is expected to start for the Roadrunners today against lefty Edwin Alicea.

On Saturday, it’ll be Myles against South Florida freshman phenomenon Michael Senay.

Starters for Sunday’s finale haven’t been announced.

First-inning power surge lifts UTSA over Tarleton State

Posted on April 7, 2026 by Jerry Briggs

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Drew Detlefsen and Andrew Stucky slammed two-run homers in a four-run first inning, powering the UTSA Roadrunners to a 6-2 victory Tuesday in Stephenville against the Tarleton State Texans.

Six UTSA pitchers limited the Texans to six hits as the Roadrunners (23-10) snapped out of a 2-4 funk this season in mid-week road games.

The Texans (21-11) had scored victories over Baylor twice and against Texas and entered the game at No. 68 in the nation on the ratings percentage index.

But the Roadrunners, ranked 40th, controlled the action from the beginning.

With Tarleton lefthander Ashton Bassett on the mound, Caden Miller led off the first, slamming a double off the right field wall.

Detlefsen followed with his team-leading 12th home run of the season, yanking a ball and sending it on a line over the left field wall.

UTSA didn’t stop there, as Garrett Gruell punched a single to right, bringing Stucky to the plate.

The UTSA catcher promptly out-did Detlefsen, hitting it on a high arc over the wall and over a screen.

In the second inning, facing righthander Matthew McCullough, Miller and Detlefsen struck again.

With one out, Miller lined a ball over the center fielder’s head and off the wall. As the ball caromed off the fence, he rounded second and ultimately slid into third with a triple.

Detlefsen followed with a deep fly ball to right, a sacrifice fly, that brought Miller home for a 5-0 lead.

UTSA kept applying pressure in the third inning against Jack Lovin, who put the first two batters aboard with a hit by pitch and a walk.

Lane Haworth continued to put the heat on Lovin with a single to right that loaded the bases.

On a Cade Sadler ground ball to the infield, the Texans got an out on a force play at second base, but Sadler beat the relay to first that brought in another run.

James Hubbard, Mike DeBattista, Ryan Self, Christopher Gutierrez, Connor Kelley and Sam Simmons pitched for the Roadrunners, with Hubbard (1-1) earning his first victory.

He worked the first two innings scoreless, allowing only one hit, walking none and striking out one.

The six UTSA pitchers struck out three and walked one. Continuing a trend, the Roadrunners’ defense played error free for the fourth straight game.

Bassett (1-2) took the loss after giving up four runs on five hits in the first inning. Last Tuesday, he was the winning pitcher in Tarleton’s 5-1 victory at Baylor.

Records

UTSA 23-10
Tarleton State 21-11

Coming up

South Florida at UTSA, Friday, 6 p.m.
South Florida at UTSA, Saturday, 2 p.m.
South Florida at UTSA, Sunday, 1 p.m.

Notable

UTSA’s mid-week road frustrations hit a low point last Tuesday afternoon at Incarnate Word. The Roadrunners blew a four-run lead and dropped a 13-11 decision on a three-run walk off homer in the ninth.

The Roadrunners have also lost on the road in the mid week to Texas State, Texas Tech and Houston Christian.

Detlefsen leads the Roadrunners in home runs with 12. With three runs driven in, he also boosted his team-leading RBI total to 42. Stucky has hit nine homers on the season.

Miller is on a tear over the last four games, stroking 10 hits in 18 at bats. The sophomore from Madisonville has ripped three doubles and a triple over his last three games.

Two top pitchers available for UTSA today at Tarleton State

Posted on April 7, 2026 by Jerry Briggs

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Coach Pat Hallmark says that Sam Simmons and Connor Kelley are in the discussion to pitch today for the UTSA Roadrunners in Stephenville against the 21-win Tarleton State Texans.

First pitch in Stephenville is scheduled for 4 p.m.

The matchup against the Texans could pose problems for the Roadrunners (22-10) as they play on the road against a dangerous non-conference opponent in a game sandwiched between series in the American last week at Rice and this weekend at home against South Florida.

The Texans (21-10) of the Western Athletic Conference have recorded victories this season against Baylor (twice, home and away) and against the second-ranked Texas Longhorns in Austin.

For the Roadrunners, a willingness to utilize both front-line pitchers is a sign of respect for the Texans and also an indication of dissatisfaction with their own 2-4 record thus far in mid-week road games.

“I haven’t named a starter yet,” Hallmark said Monday in a zoom conference with the media. “You know, Sam and Kelley are both available, so you could see those guys.

“I don’t know about two Tuesdays ago, but last Tuesday (at Incarnate Word) they weren’t available. They had pitched (the previous) Sunday. So, hopefully we can get them the ball a little bit.”

While UTSA is listed at No. 40 nationally on the latest ratings percentage index, Tarleton isn’t far behind at 68th.

“Twenty one wins and they beat Baylor twice,” Hallmark said. “Beat some other good teams, and we’re going up there. Like everybody, they’re always tougher at their own ballpark.”

Records

UTSA 22-10
Tarleton State 21-10

Coming up

Non-conference
UTSA at Tarleton State, today, 4 p.m.

American Conference
South Florida at UTSA, Friday, 6 p.m.
South Florida at UTSA, Saturday, 2 p.m.
South Florida at UTSA, Sunday, 1 p.m.

UTSA bounces back against Rice to claim its 14th straight series victory in the American

Posted on April 4, 2026 by Jerry Briggs

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners didn’t flinch after they dropped back-to-back games in walk-off fashion earlier this week.

Caden Miller had a big day on Saturday in Houston with three hits and five RBIs. – File photo by Joe Alexander

Seemingly, they just reverted to the basics of the game, the fundamentals that have under-girded their rise as one of the best mid-major programs in the nation.

The Roadrunners rolled past the Rice Owls 13-0 Saturday afternoon in Houston to claim a second straight win via shutout and their 14th straight series victory in American Conference play.

Officials called it after seven innings on the run rule.

After losing 13-11 at Incarnate Word on Tuesday afternoon and 3-2 in 10 innings to open the road series at Rice on Thursday night, UTSA rebounded with two wins in two days in dominating fashion.

First, they followed the lead of starting pitcher Conor Myles to an 8-0 victory on Friday.

Next, they surged in the series finale with another strong pitching performance, this one backed by a 14-hit attack.

Leading 2-0 after four innings, the Roadrunners erupted for five runs in the fifth and four more in the sixth to quiet an Easter weekend crowd at Reckling Park.

Home runs by UTSA’s Christian Hallmark and Drew Detlefsen highlighted a fifth-inning uprising that included some sloppy play by the home team.

An error, two walks and two wild pitches by the Owls allowed the Roadrunners to break away. Detlefsen’s 11th homer of the season capped the outburst and made it 7-0.

Caden Miller added two-run singles in the sixth and the seventh innings for the Roadrunners.

For the game, the left-side, swinging sophomore from Madisonville had three hits and five RBIs.

Detlefsen and Hallmark also had three-hit performances. It was only the second three-hit day of the season for Hallmark, a sophomore transfer out of Navarro College.

In Detlefsen’s case, he also produced three RBI, giving him a team-leading 39 in 31 games.

Freshman pitcher Christopher Gutierrez (1-0) earned the first victory of his college career after a season-high two and a third innings of relief.

Christian Okerholm started the game, followed by Gutierrez and Kendall Dove. Combined, the threesome held the Owls to only two hits, while walking four and striking out three.

Gutierrez is a lefty from Houston-area Spring and Ridgeland High School, who has been used mostly in a situational role to this point.

Entering the game with no outs and a runner on first base in the third, he pitched well into the fifth, allowing no runs on two hits and two walks, while striking out two.

Rice freshman Ty Thames (2-2) took the loss.

The big righthander from Wimberley worked three and a third innings. He allowed seven runs on five hits, though four of the runs were unearned.

Records

UTSA 22-10, 6-3
Rice 19-14, 4-5

Coming up

UTSA at Tarleton State, Tuesday, 4 p.m.
South Florida at UTSA, Friday, 6 p.m.
South Florida at UTSA, Saturday, April 11, 2 p.m.
South Florida at UTSA, Sunday, April 12, 1 p.m.

Notable

UTSA recorded back-to-back shutout victories for the first time since it blanked Long Island, 13-0 and 15-0, both at home and in seven innings, on Feb. 22 and 23 in 2025.

The Roadrunners’ defense played error-free baseball for 26 straight innings at Rice, including 10 on Thursday, nine on Friday and seven on Saturday.

Miller and Detlefsen also had big weekends. Miller had eight hits in 13 at bats in the three games, pushing his batting average to .396 for the season.

Detlefsen’s average spiked to a team-leading .409 after he went six for 14.

UTSA freshman Aidan Eshelman started all three games at shortstop in the Rice series.

Blessed with a strong arm, he played solid defense this weekend and contributed offensively in the finale, scoring four runs.

UTSA’s first-year player from Houston Episcopal High School went two for three and drove in one in Game 3.

Myles and Detlefsen combine to lead UTSA past Rice, 8-0

Posted on April 3, 2026 by Jerry Briggs

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Lefthander Conor Myles pitched scoreless baseball into the seventh inning, and Drew Detlefsen drove in three runs with three hits, as the UTSA Roadrunners scored an 8-0 victory over the Rice Owls Friday night in Houston.

With the decision, the Roadrunners set themselves up to win their 14th straight series in American Conference play if they can score another victory in the finale, scheduled for noon on Saturday.

UTSA entered the day on a two-game losing streak, having lost on walk-offs against both the University of the Incarnate Word Tuesday night in San Antonio and to Rice in the series opener Thursday.

After falling to the Owls 3-2 in 10 innings on a bases-loaded walk a night earlier, the Roadrunners handed the ball to Myles, who pitched a gem.

The 6-foot-4 southpaw from Australia kept Rice off balance all night, working six and a third innings, allowing no runs and permitting only two hits.

Much of the time, Myles had the Owls hitting either soft fly balls or pop ups.

Myles, who earned the victory and improved to 4-1, combined with relievers Christopher Gutierrez and Connor Kelley for the second shutout of the season for Roadrunners pitching.

Kelley finished the game with six strikeouts in two innings.

Earlier, Rice stayed in the game behind starter Ethan Sanders. After allowing an unearned run in the second, the freshman righthander held UTSA scoreless for four straight innings.

Detlefsen produced a run-scoring single in a three-run seventh and a two-run single in a three-run eighth as the Roadrunners broke the game open.

Records

UTSA 21-10, 5-3
Rice 19-13, 4-4

Coming up

UTSA at Rice, Saturday, noon

Notable

The Roadrunners’ only other shutout victory this season came on March 7 in Las Cruces, N.M. when they downed the New Mexico State Aggies, 13-0.

In that game, Myles pitched five and a third innings in a contest that was stopped after seven innings on the run rule.

Rice tops UTSA 3-2 in 10 innings on a bases-loaded walk

Posted on April 2, 2026 by Jerry Briggs

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Paul Smith drew a bases-loaded walk with two out in the 10th inning to force in the winning run, and the Rice Owls claimed a 3-2 victory over the UTSA Roadrunners Thursday night in American Conference baseball at Reckling Park.

With UTSA ace reliever Sam Simmons on the mound, Rice’s Landis Davila executed a one-out bunt single. Cole Green followed by fisting a ball off his bat handle that squibbed through the right side.

On the play, Davila advanced all the way to third. After Green advanced to second on defensive indifference, UTSA elected to walk Colin Robson intentionally to load the bases.

UTSA made a play at that point to cut off a run and get the second out of the inning. On a ground ball to second base, the throw came home to force a base runner at the plate.

After an umpire’s review, apparently to determine whether UTSA catcher Andrew Stucky had control of the ball, the call was allowed to stand.

Smith subsequently worked the count to 3-1 and then took a called second strike from Simmons. The next pitch was outside, allowing Green to score the winning run.

UTSA has played three straight games in which the outcome has been decided in walk-off fashion on the last play.

The Roadrunners split the first two, beating the East Carolina Pirates 8-7 in 10 innings Sunday at home on Caden Miller’s RBI single, and then losing Tuesday on the road to the UIW Cardinals, 13-11, on a three-run homer by Cole Tabor.

In the first game of a series at Rice’s Reckling Park, the pitching on both sides was top notch for most of the evening.

Rice starter and Tennessee transfer Tanner Wiggins worked seven innings and scattered 10 hits, allowing two runs, only one of them earned.

Another former Tennessee pitcher, Brayden Sharp, earned the win in hurling the last three innings scoreless, allowing only one hit.

The Rice duo was particularly tough with runners on base, limiting UTSA to 3-for-19 in those situations. The Roadrunners were 1-for-9 with runners in scoring positions.

UTSA, in the end, left nine runners stranded.

A painful sequence for the Roadrunners unfolded in the top of the 10th when Jacob Silva drew a two-out walk.

After he stole second base, the throw from the catcher got away, but Rice second baseman JC Davis retrieved it and made a heads-up play. He fired to third to end the inning, erasing Silva, who was trying to advance.

For UTSA, freshman pitcher Ryan Self allowed a run in the first inning and then yielded to Gunnar Brown, who worked the next six frames.

Brown, retiring 10 in a row at one point, permitted only a run on four hits through the seventh inning.

Simmons took the loss in two and two thirds of an inning. He yielded one run on two hits, with two walks and a strikeout.

Records

UTSA 20-10, 4-3
Rice 19-12, 4-3

Coming up

UTSA at Rice, Friday, 6:35 p.m.
UTSA at Rice, Saturday, 1:05 p.m.

Notable

UTSA cleanup hitter Andrew Stucky had four hits, including a second-inning solo homer. It was his eighth homer of the season and his second in his last two games.

Roadrunners left fielder Drew Detlefsen threw out a Rice baserunner trying to score from second in the second inning, his second assist on a throw from the outfield in the last two weeks.

He fielded a ball on the bounce, reached back and fired home to Stucky, the catcher, for the out.

Detlefsen did the same thing on March 24 at home against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, with Jacob Silva receiving the throw.

Rice beat UTSA for the first time since April of 2024 and broke a five-game losing streak against the Roadrunners. UTSA went 4-0 against Rice last season.

For the second straight week, UTSA has lost a weekend series opener in the American.

Last Friday, the East Carolina Pirates won 3-0 at UTSA, only to see the Roadrunners bounce back to take the next two to clinch their 13th straight series victory in conference play.

UTSA hits the road to play three in the American at Rice

Posted on April 2, 2026 by Jerry Briggs

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Riding an emotional roller coaster this week, UTSA Roadrunners will take on the Rice Owls in a three-game American Conference baseball series starting Thursday at Reckling Park in Houston.

In facing the Owls (18-12, 3-3), Head Coach Pat Hallmark’s Roadrunners (20-9, 4-2) are coming off some highs and lows over last four days.

On Sunday, they clinched their 13th straight conference series victory in the American with an 8-7, 10-inning win at home over the East Carolina Pirates.

Caden Miller delivered the winning hit on a walk-off with a single through the right side.

On Tuesday, they built a lead that reached four runs in both the fifth and sixth innings at Incarnate Word, only to lose the non-conference encounter with their cross-town rivals, 13-11, on a walk-off home run in the ninth.

The Roadrunners will have no time to lament the loss of a game they were expected to win, because they’ll need to focus their full attention on the Owls, who have won three in a row and nine of their last 14.

Colin Robson is one of the hottest hitters for Rice coach David Pierce. He had two hits in a home victory over the UTRGV Vaqueros on Tuesday, and in his last four games, he has eight hits and eight RBIs.

Another player swinging the bat well is Garet Boehm, who connected on a three-run home run in a 5-2 victory over the FAU Owls on Saturday. In an 8-1 victory on Sunday, Boehm followed on Sunday with a grand slam.

As a result, Rice bounced back from a 6-2 loss to win the series. The Owls defeated the visiting UTRGV Vaqueros 6-4 on Tuesday.

The Owls played through a year of transition in 2025, as the program fired head coach Jose Cruz, Jr. after the first month and then hired Pierce, a former head coach at the University of Texas.

Pierce is 525-306 in his 15th season as a head coach. Previously, both Pierce and Hallmark worked together on the Rice coaching staff under Wayne Graham.

Hallmark is 226-153 in his ninth year as a head coach, including 160-105 in his seventh season at UTSA.

Records

Rice 18-12, 3-3
UTSA 20-9, 4-2

Coming up

UTSA at Rice, Thursday, 6:35 p.m.
UTSA at Rice, Friday, 6:35 p.m.
UTSA at Rice, Saturday, 1:05 p.m.

Notable

Rice leads the all-time series against UTSA, 30-25. But the Roadrunners have turned it around lately on their I-10 rival, winning the last five games and nine of the last 11.

UTSA was 4-0 against Rice in 2025. The Roadrunners swept the Owls in three games at San Antonio to close the regular-season and then won once in the conference tournament at Clearwater, Fla.

Cole Tabor’s walk-off homer lifts UIW over UTSA, 13-11

Posted on March 31, 2026 by Jerry Briggs

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

San Antonio’s Cole Tabor launched a game-winning, two-out, three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday afternoon to lift the University of the Incarnate Word Cardinals to a 13-11 victory over the UTSA Roadrunners.

In a dramatic finish to a non-conference game between San Antonio’s two NCAA Division I programs, UIW (15-14) trailed 11-9 going into its last at bat against UTSA (20-9) when Drake Anderson led off with a walk against Roadrunners reliever Mike DeBattista.

Anderson moved up to second on a ground ball by Thomas Lyssy for the first out of the inning.

After Enrico Carrion struck out, Trent Rucker singled into right field, allowing Anderson to score and cut the lead to one run.

Preston Newberry followed with a single to center, putting runners at first and second and bringing Tabor to the plate.

The left-side swinging Tabor responded by hitting a 2-1 pitch from Battista far over the right field wall to end the game.

It was the third homer of the day for the Cardinals and the team-leading ninth of the season for Tabor.

The finish was reminiscent of a 2023 UTSA at UIW game when former Cardinals slugger Rey Mendoza walked it off with a towering three-run homer to beat the Roadrunners.

Tabor came out of Reagan High School and played two years at Temple Junior College before transferring to Texas State, where he played in the 2025 season.

Records

UTSA 20-9
UIW 15-14

Coming up

UTSA at Rice, Thursday, 6:30 p.m.
Southeastern Louisiana at UIW, Thursday, 2 p.m.

Notable

The Roadrunners, who open a three-game American Conference series at Rice on Thursday night, held leads of 9-5 after the top of the fifth inning and 11-7 after the top of the sixth and couldn’t hang on.

The Cardinals, who will host Southeastern Louisiana on Thursday in the Southland Conference, scored one run in the seventh and eighth innings and four in the ninth to win.

UIW senior righthander Colin Huspen (1-0) gave up one hit in a scoreless top of the ninth to earn the victory. Huspen was the 10th pitcher used by first-year Cardinals coach Nick Zaleski.

UTSA head coach Pat Hallmark, who coached at UIW in 2018 and 2019, used nine pitchers. DeBattista (2-2) took the loss after yielding five runs on five hits in two innings.

Rucker, the brother of UTSA softball player Skylar Rucker, had a big day for the Cardinals. He hit a two-run home run in the third inning and added two outstanding plays in center field.

One came on a diving catch of a drive off the bat of UTSA’s Cade Sadler for the third out in the seventh inning.

In the ninth, UTSA’s Jordan Ballin tried to go from first to third on a single up the middle but was thrown out on Rucker’s one-hop throw to end the inning.

Tony DeJesus also homered for the Cardinals, hitting a two-run shot to left in the fifth.

For UTSA, Lane Haworth went three for five and scored twice, including once on a solo homer in the top of the sixth. He finished with one RBI.

Andrew Stucky also homered for UTSA. His two-run blast to left in the second lifted the Roadrunners into a 3-0 lead. Sadler and Jacob Silva also had two hits.

Incarnate Word beat UTSA for the second straight time and improved to 3-3 against its cross-town rival since the 2023 season.

In 2023, the Roadrunners downed the Cardinals 2-1 at UTSA but dropped the second meeting of the season, losing 9-6 on Mendoza’s walk-off homer at UIW.

In 2024, the Roadrunners won 13-3 at UTSA and won again, 7-4, at UIW.

Last season, the Cardinals claimed an 8-5 victory at Roadrunner Field.